Starting a Herb Garden

Perk up your dinner and save money – our top tips for growing your own herbs.

Top tips for growing herbs and how to use them.

Basil scattered on a margherita pizza. A few sprigs of rosemary perfuming a roast chicken. Mint leaves snipped into a springtime salad. Fresh herbs lift a vast array of foods onto another level – but as the cost of living skyrockets, they’re getting more and more expensive.

Instead of buying a plastic packet of coriander every time a recipe calls for it, what if you could just snip some out of the backyard? Fresh herbs are one of the most useful things you can grow and they should be the bedrock of any kitchen garden.

If you’ve never grown herbs yourself before, don’t worry – most herbs are incredibly easy to grow. Here are some tips for getting yours started.

Choosing your herbs

Start by figuring out what you’d like to grow. Herbs come in two varieties: perennials and annuals. Perennial herbs include rosemary, mint, oregano, thyme, sage and chives and arguably have the highest reward-to-e ort ratio, because once established, they’ll just keep growing. Annuals include parsley, coriander and basil and complete their life cycle in a season or two, so you need to sow new seeds or seedlings at least every year for a continuous supply.

When choosing what you’d like to grow, it’s most important to consider what you actually like to eat. But if you like all herbs and just want to start with something easy, mint and parsley are among the most straightforward to grow.

Setting up

You can grow herbs either from seeds or from seedlings. Seedlings are the easiest way to go because the plant is already established and just needs repotting. Pop your seedlings in the ground or into pots – make sure the pot isn’t too big to start with; you can always repot once the plant has found its feet! – and give them a bit of love (see ‘Sun and water’ for tips). Snip leaves as you need them.

That being said, there’s nothing like the magic of growing a plant from seed – and it’s cheaper. Plant seeds in garden beds or seedling trays, about twice the thickness of the seed under the soil. Give the plant a bit of encouragement with compost or organic fertiliser. Make sure it’s getting the sun and water it needs and you should have some leaves soon!

Most herbs thrive planted in spring/early summer. Replace the plants during the season if needed.

Sun and water

Each herb has slightly di erent sun and water requirements and to get the best out of your plant, it’s worth paying attention. Here are some of the most common herbs and their requirements (you can find a full list on any garden centre website):

Parsley: Likes full sun, unless it’s extremely hot; then partial shade. Needs regular watering, especially during hot, dry weather.

Basil: Likes sunshine, although partial shade is also fine – most of all, basil likes being warm. Water regularly but let the soil dry out before you add more.

Mint: Unfussy mint can grow in a sunny or shady spot. It’s best grown in a pot so as not to take over the garden. Water regularly.

Oregano: Allow full sun to partial shade. Oregano is a hardy plant and grows well in drier conditions, so allow your soil or potting mix to dry between waterings.

Rosemary: Loves full sun. Water regularly, but it’s a hardy plant so don’t worry if you miss a day or two.

Thyme: Full sun. Thyme is extremely stable and drought-tolerant, so water only when required.

Coriander: Full sun to light shade – keep out of the wind. Water regularly, but don’t swamp the plant.

Harvesting

When harvesting your herbs, make sure your plant is large enough to sustain new growth before you start. Next, remember to harvest regularly. Taking some of the leaves o your plant will stimulate new growth. Try to harvest the leaves before the plant starts flowering, as once flowers have appeared, most herbs tend to become bitter and lose their flavour. It’s also advisable to harvest your leaves early in the morning – after the dew has dried but before it’s getting hot. At this point, the aromatics and oils in the herbs are at their peak.

How to use your herbs

Add herbs to your cooking to bring dishes to life – think coriander to top a green curry or basil in a classic caprese salad. If you have a real glut, consider making Iranian kuku sabzi, a classic herb frittata. As well as using herbs fresh, you could consider blending them into a pesto with olive oil and freezing the mixture in an ice cube tray, to add an extra hit of flavour to future dishes, or drying them for fragrant bouquets around the house. Pressing them like flowers can also create pretty decorations for cards and table settings – your imagination is the limit!